Four instant pots (but almost zero waste?)

It's hard to reconcile the "anti-consumerist" side of me with this fact:  I now own four instant pots.

The first Instant Pot acquisition makes frugal sense: it's a super energy efficient way to make a bunch of things that I'd previous used other, more energy-intensive appliances for.  AND it was something I put on a Christmas-wish-list that people who want to buy me stuff could buy, forestalling their buying me things I do *not* want . . . so frugal in that way, too.

The second Instant Pot, also maybe: it was a gift to Nelson back when he was in culinary school, and then when his living situation kept changing, he left it at our home, where we ended up co-opting it and putting it to occasional use alongside Instant Pot number 1.

The third Instant Pot?  We're getting into frivolity territory here.  I'd semi-justified it because it's different than the other two in two key ways: (1) at 8 quarts, it's larger than the other two which are "only" 6 quarts each, and it has an air fryer attachment.   Both features have come in handy at various times, so I have zero regrets, but I also totally admit I'm moving from the realm of sheer practicality into the expanses of luxury.

And the fourth? It matches the first two; I bought it (still in the original box, unused) off of Craigslist, for not-very-much money.  Indeed, it had been sitting around on Craigslist for several months, which makes me think that the market for such appliances is becoming saturated.  And I bought it for a good, but temporary reason, which is that this semester I'm going to be providing several lunches for 20ish people (maybe as many as 30 people sometimes), and I wanted to do it without incurring the usual trash that comes with ordering delivery -- hence, I want to actually make the food myself.  Instant Pots are a fabulous appliance for anyone who wants to set-it-and-forget-it, and so I decided it would be good to have an at-work version of this baby to supplement my three at-home versions.  

My at-work Instant Pot,
with a large can of plates and a basket of cloth napkins.

I am pleased to report a resounding success.  On Monday, I trotted out the three 6-quart instant pots and had a fabulous book discussion group for 20 people.  We ate rice (from one pot) and vegetarian chili (from two other pots).   I had a large bin of pretzels and a gallon jug of pickles on the side, and a bit of local cheese as garnish.

One of the fears I have about being frugal is presenting the way I live as somehow inferior, so I was quite nervous about running out of food or about having people judge the food as plain/boring.  But in fact,  the guests raved about how good the chili was, maybe because I added some cocoa powder, and they loved the brown rice and the shredded cheese that I'd bought in a 7 lb block from a local, organic Amish farmer for half the price of usual store-bought cheese.  And we didn't run out -- just the opposite:  we had gobs of food left over, with many people taking extras home in their own containers (which I'd urged them to bring).  So I got to make people happy and also feel generous, and do it for something like $3/person ($6 per person, if you add in the price of the Craigslist instant pot, although I'll use it for future meals, too, so $3 is more realistic).   So, no trash, and yummy food that people got to take along with them, and yet still it was much cheaper than any restaurant I know near us.  

Yes!